Uncanny X-Men #23Review

Uncanny X-Men #23 kicks off "The Last Will and Testament of Charles Xavier," a story that has no direct connection to Original Sin, but is so thematically similar that the Original Sin banner on the cover never seems out of place. The time has finally come to gather the X-Men and read Xavier's will. But that means all the X-Men need to come together, schisms and blood feuds notwithstanding. Even not knowing what shocking reveals are contained within the will, that premise has plenty of potential for drama. Enough that it should tide readers over through what is largely a setup issue.

Part of the appeal with this issue is that Brian Bendis focuses as much on the Jean Grey School's X-Men as he does Cyclops' crew. With both of Bendis' X-books now revolving around the latter, it's always nice to get a glimpse of how the other side is faring. A guest appearance by She-Hulk doesn't hurt one bit either. Bendis manages to both explore the lasting emotional fallout of Xavier's death and poke fun at the fact that death is such a transient state in the Marvel Universe. There's little point in reading a will if the deceased is going to be resurrected by aliens or turn out to be a clone.

Bendis still finds time to further Uncanny's own plot threads as well. Hijack receives a nice welcome as he rejoins the team and Cyclops is forced to admit he was actually wrong about something. The ongoing mystery surrounding Tempus and her sudden age jump is also explored. Part of me worries that the Cyclops/Tempus relationship will veer into 1980's-era Hal Jordan/Arisia territory, but right now is handled well and without too many romantic undertones. And Dazzler is a heavy focus, suffering a psychological break after her ordeal at Mystique's hands. Her ongoing character arc might just be the most interesting the series has to offer right now.

Kris Anka takes point with this arc, offering a lighter touch compared to Chris Bachalo's distinctive style. Anka's facial work and emotion play well with Bendis' script. However, the colors are a little garish at times, and some panels are too loose and vaguely defined in terms of character details.